International
5 Reasons We Will Avoid Edtech Conferences | EdSurge has done our community a great service by aggregating (in a handy circular diagram) many of our postsecondary edtech conferences and convenings. This curated map of annual edtech conferences also perfectly coincides with our newly emerging realization that neither of us wishes to attend (almost) any of these future events.
The Flaw at the Heart of Psychological Research | Psychology is in a bit of trouble these days. It has made headlines for questionable interpretations of statistics and for well-known studies that can’t be replicated. (May require subscription)
Preparing for ‘Era of Data Ubiquity’ | Researchers convene to discuss how the deluge of data collected about students can be used to benefit higher education without compromising privacy.
The technology of higher education | For nearly 30 years, pundits have predicted that education technology would disrupt higher education… none of these are the game-changers we expected. So, herein we offer a new promise: the new language of competencies will disrupt higher education… Trust us.
Study: MOOC learning outcomes unchanged by customized instruction | A recent study shows dividing massive open online course (MOOC) learners into groups based on communication preferences did not improve completion outcomes.
U.S. National
Who got rich off the student debt crisis | A generation ago, Congress privatized a student loan program intended to give more Americans access to higher education. In its place, lawmakers created another profit center for Wall Street and a system of college finance that has fed the nation’s cycle of inequality.
New NASFAA Research Shows Some Students Not Taking Advantage of Federal Work-Study Opportunities | As part of its “Development of a Robust Federal Work-Study Program” project, NASFAA today released a new step-by-step framework for practitioners to use when creating and administering an optimal FWS program that helps match as many students as possible with FWS jobs well suited to them.
Experts Give Federal Student Aid System a Failing Grade | Despite ongoing efforts to make it more efficient, the federal student aid system was lambasted Wednesday as being “untenable” and overly complex.
Linking Existing Federal Data Systems to Expand Knowledge of Higher Education | The federal government already has several comprehensive student-level data systems, but protecting the privacy of higher education institutions has led to restrictions in federal law that prevent their effective use.
This Guy Got Tenure. You Probably Won’t. | One of three very bad things is poised to happen to the institution of tenure.
America’s Divided Recovery: College Haves and Have-Nots | Over 95 percent of jobs created during the recovery have gone to workers with at least some college education, while those with a high school diploma or less are being left behind.
U.S. States
How to Count Higher Ed Costs | Critics say the Higher Education Cost Adjustment index leads to the wrong conclusions on state funding and policy.
Nearly 1 Million Community-College Students Lack Access to Federal Student Loans | Nine percent of community-college students, or nearly one million people, attend institutions that don’t participate in the federal student-loan program, according to a study released on Wednesday by the Institute for College Access and Success.
Institutional
PCC Notes: Study reveals ‘healthy campus climate’ | Pitt Community College has published the results of a recent campus climate study that shows scores higher than peer institutions in most of the areas measured and across-the-board improvement at PCC since the same survey was conducted there in 2006.
Haverford Drops Need-Blind Admissions | Only a small minority of private colleges — generally among the most elite and most wealthy — pledge to admit students without regard to financial need and to meet the full financial need of accepted applicants. That group is now smaller…
Private Urban Universities Beat Rivals in Enrollment and Revenue Growth, Moody’s Says | Private urban universities are outperforming their rural and suburban counterparts in enrollment and revenue growth, according to a new report from Moody’s Investors Service.
‘Be a Man’ | Across the country, male students are falling behind female students in college enrollment, academic performance and retention.